Sheldon has found himself, at last.
Sheldon followed Penny through the house to a small enclosed porch overlooking the paddock. He stood, looking out the screen door, while she sat down. He took a deep breath and turned to face her. "Penny, I would like for you to refer me to another therapist."
She felt surprised and little hurt. By the way he flinched slightly, she knew he had seen it in her face. "May I ask why?"
He hesitated a second before sitting beside her. "Penny, you have helped me face a lot of things that were holding me stagnant. I am a much better friend and brother now than I was a year ago. I still have a lot of work to do, but I know now that I will get there."
He bit his lower lip and reached out to hold her hand. "But I don't think I can do it with you as my therapist. I don't think of you as my therapist anymore. I care about you in a way that is not professional."
Penny started to open her mouth and he shook his head quickly. "Please let me finish before I lose my courage. I know I don't love you in a romantic way, but I do still have these confusing, irrational feelings. I want to continue my therapy with someone I can remain on a professional setting with. I want you and I to be friends. True, close friends. I want to get to know Charlie, as well."
Sheldon paused and looked at her sheepishly. "I want what Missy has achieved. Someone to love and be loved by. I do not think I can do that if I continue to fight the way I feel about you."
Penny stared at him for several seconds. Slowly she smiled and gave his hand a squeeze. "I've always known you were a smart guy, Sheldon. You're right. You and I are too close to each other for our sessions to be effective anymore. I would be happy to recommend another therapist." She leaned in and pulled him into a hug. "And I'd be even happier to remain friends."
Sheldon hugged her tight for a moment before reluctantly releasing her and standing up. "I think I will go see what Howard and Leonard are doing. The last I saw of them, they were being cornered by some chickens near the barn."
Penny watched him exit through the screen door and walk swiftly across the yard. She smiled as Charlie wrapped his arms around her from behind. She leaned her head back and soaked in the warmth and strength he offered.
"You should be really proud of yourself," he said softly. "He's a very likable guy. He seems to be quite capable of taking care of himself."
She nodded and turned in his arms. "I am proud," she said. "I'm proud of hard he has worked. I'm proud of Leonard and Howard. I'm proud of Bo. I'm proud of Sandy, and Greg, and Carl, and Harriett. I'm proud of all my patients. And I'm proud of us."
Charlie grinned and pulled her in tight for a kiss. "I love you," he murmured tenderly.
"I love you, too," she answered.
XTBBTX
Sheldon fidgeted and slipped two fingers under the bowtie to loose it a bit. Small hands slapped away his and then straightened the tie again. He glared at the twinkling blue eyes that laughed at him.
"Keep it up and your face will freeze that way," Becca warned. "If you ruin Penny's wedding photos, she'll kill you."
Sheldon grimaced and allowed her to smooth his vest as well. "I will never understand what possessed Penny and Charlie to have a wedding in the middle of August. It is sweltering. I may die in this tuxedo."
Becca grinned as Missy joined them. "At least you'll be a good looking corpse," his sister said.
Bo and Charlie gave Sheldon a sympathetic look as Howard and Leonard joined the group as well. Like the bridesmaids, Howard was wearing lilac, only instead of a dress, he wore a lilac dress shirt and dark slacks. He also carried a small bouquet of white roses and lavender.
"The minister is ready," Leonard said. "Time to take our places."
Sheldon held out his arm for Becca. Charlie grinned and headed to the front of the church. Missy and Bo were next, followed by Howard and Leonard. Then he and Becca as best man and maid of honor headed to the alter. They were halfway to the alter when Sheldon cleared his throat lightly and leaned slightly toward Becca.
"Are you free Saturday?" he whispered.
Becca looked up at him mischievously. "Why?" she whispered back.
"I would like to take you to a little Greek restaurant I discovered," he replied softly.
Becca looked at him with surprise. "Oh?"
They reached the alter and Sheldon held on for a moment longer. "7pm?"
Becca grinned and pulled away, taking her place. "You're on."
Charlie leaned toward Sheldon as the bridal march began. "Thanks a lot, buddy. Now I owe Penny $20."
Sheldon looked at the man who had quickly become one of his closest friends over the last five months. "Oh?"
Charlie's eyes locked onto Penny as she slowly approached. "Yep. She said you would ask Becca out before we got married. I said you'd wait until the reception."
Sheldon looked toward Penny and smirked. "You should know better than to bet against someone who can read people like a book."
Penny stepped up onto the alter and Charlie reached into his pocket and held out a twenty to her. Penny immediately tucked it into her bust and grinned widely. She moved forward and hugged him tight, making Sheldon blush lightly at the attention. The pastor cleared his throat loudly and Penny shushed him before smiling up at Sheldon.
"I knew it," she said fondly. "Good for you, sweetie."
Sheldon blushed even brighter as Becca giggled and winked at him. He quickly kissed Penny's cheek and set her back. "Thank you," he said softly. Penny and Charlie clasped hands and he watched fondly as his best friend got married to the man she loved.
He still had feelings for Penny, but now those feelings were clearer. He cared about her. He admired her. But he no longer confused those things with desire. There was nothing he wouldn't do for Penny, or her for him. They were the very best of friends. But he could distinguish now between the love of a friend and the love of a woman.
He looked at Becca again. She had changed her hair color to a soft teal that complimented the lilac gown rather well. She was loud, mouthy, opinionated, and had absolutely no sense of restraint. He had begun stopping in at the bakery once a week to get to know Bo better, and ended up becoming fascinated by Becca. He wasn't sure if there was potential for a relationship there, but he did know he wanted to find out.
Sheldon focused once again on the ceremony playing out before him. Therapy hadn't just help him secure funding for his work. It had opened up his eyes to the world around him. It had given him a closer relationship with his sister, a true best friend, and a life that he enjoyed instead of just tolerated. Maybe he should send Seibert a bottle of 20 year old scotch in gratitude.
A/N: I had to end the story here. Part of me wants to continue it and show you the life of Sheldon and Becca (who I modeled after wolfofsheep, personality-wise) but there's another part of me that knows if I do, I'll have to eventually rip Bo out of Missy's life, and I just can't do that. So, instead, I'll stop right here and just say that, for as long as they could, everyone lived a happy, love-filled life.